In this upcoming draft while most of us have zeroed in on our urge of landing a dynamic pass rusher to add to Steve Spagnuolo’s improving defense there is another area of need on this Saints squad that has reared its ugly head as of late. Outside of the guard position this entire Saints offensive line is in a severe need of an upgrade. While it’s naive for us to believe that all of the Saints off-season’s needs will be meet, it is logically to think that the organization will try it’s best to do so.

Many of the Saints defensive needs can be upgraded through free agency but make no mistake, this team will never boast a defense on the level of a San Francisco or Pittsburgh. Those are team built around defense, while the Saints are and will remain an offensively 1st built franchise. Mickey Loomis is sure to add yet another few free agent defenders this offseason at reasonable prices because players will be looking to join a winning contender as well as teams being conservative in spending on defenders due to the depth of defender in this draft. The Saints at no point will look to build a dominate defense because in order to do so takes money, money the Saints currently don’t have. Instead the Saints will simply look to build a solid defensive unit and with the way Spags has them playing down the stretch it is conceivable that he’s just a few veteran free agents away from that.

Offensively however it’s a different story…

The Saints have boasted one of the elite offenses in the NFL 7 years running. They currently have the league’s highest paid player in Drew Brees under center and the game’s best offensive mind and play caller in Sean Payton. Jimmy Graham is a bon-a-fide superstar in this league as Brees top playmaker and the Saints have the luxury of a stable of quality NFL running backs. Marcus Colston and Lance Moore provide Brees with two of the NFL’s most underrated receivers and Joe Morgan and Nick Toon have great potential moving forward.

The problems for the Saints however are upfront in the trenches. Brees has continually seen his protection schemes breakdown and is forced to elude pressure far too quickly. The Saints possess one of the top guard tandems in the NFL with Grubbs and Evans but outside of that the talent level really drops off. Jermon Bushrod is a solid left tackle but might be a better fit on the right side. Zach Strief is a serviceable right tackle but is better suited as a reserve and third option in the Saints jumbo packages. Charles Brown showed promise when he did play this season but he continues to be plagued by the injury bug that has haunted him since his days at USC. Brian De La Puente is the Zach Strief of interior lineman who is serviceable but shouldn’t be a starting center in the NFL.

For a team that’s built around their elite offense and the league’s highest paid quarterback this are far too many issues up front in their protection to ignore.

So why Barrett Jones?

Simple… Versatility!

Barrett Jones is and has been the leader of the Alabama offense for a while now and although he’s currently playing center for the Crimson Tide his true NFL position is still unknown. Jones started his career at Alabama at guard as a redshirt freshman paving the way for Heisman trophy winning running back and current Saints player Mark Ingram. In his Junior season the Tide moved Jones to left tackle where some questioned whether or not he had the athletic ability to hold up on the edge, how did Jones respond? He was phenomenal! Jones earned first team all SEC for his play at left tackle and put his name on the map as one of college football’s truly elite offensive lineman. In Jones’s senior season this year Alabama was simply looking to get the best 5 offensive lineman on the field and that’s where Jones’s versatility and team first mentality came to the forefront. Jones moved inside for his senior season for the betterment of the football team and has responded with yet another all American year for the Tide.

Here are some of the quality attributes that should make Barrett Jones a no brainer in this April’s draft…

VersatilityI think we’ve covered this for the most part so far. Not only does Jones possess the ability to play any position on the offensive line, he can play any of them at an All-Pro level. This type of ability is a rare find in offensive lineman and should never be undervalued when evaluating a prospect.

Size and ExperienceAt 6’5” & 315lbs Jones possesses the size to be an elite offensive lineman at any position up front. He is battled tested having been a dominate starter in the SEC for the past 4 years while facing some of college football’s top defenders.

Intellect & CharacterJones possesses an extremely high football IQ and is a highly intellectual person. Jones graduated with his degree in accounting in three years with a 4.0 GPA and was getting his Master’s degree during his Junior season last year. Jones also works with a charity that has prompted him to make several trips to Haiti to work with an orphanage.

LeadershipJones is maybe the biggest vocal leader on Alabama’s squad and has been for the last two years. He’s a tough minded, team first, no nonsense type of player who embraces the opportunity to lead his fellow teammates into battle.

Durability & ToughnessFor the most part, Jones never really dealt with any serious injuries at Alabama but the few he did have he gutted them out on the football field. Jones is on record as of saying that he doesn’t fear anything except for letting his teammates down. He is currently dealing with a foot injury that he battled through to help lead his team to a comeback win against Georgia in for the SEC championship and the right to play Notre Dame for their second straight National Championship which Jones (who had to be helped off the field by crutches) has stated it’s a game he wouldn’t miss for the world.

A master at his craftWhile Jones may not be the supreme athlete that others are, there is no doubt that he is indeed athletic. He is also a supreme technician, his hand placement and knee bend are flawless and his overall technique allows him to excel in both run and pass blocking against some of college football’s most elite athletes.

So, why should Jones be drafted in the 1st round by the Saints?
As this season has progressed I will admit that I too felt that a pass rusher or some other defender had to be the pick. Now, with the progression of the defense and the regression of our offensive line I have no doubts that upgrading our offensive front and protecting our superstar quarterback is and should be our top priority this offseason.

With the selection of Jones, the Saints can bring back their offensive line as it is now. With Jones versatility and intellect, he could conceivably challenge Bushrod, Strief, Brown & Puente for a starting job at either LT, RT or OC. The mere presence of Jones ability will create stiff competition on the offensive line and threaten everyone’s roster spot upfront. I am a firm believer that competition breeds success and whether Jones wins the starting LT, RT or OC position in training camp, his mere presence will have a trickling effect across the entire offensive line and force each player on it to step up their games in 2013.

That’s what you call killing two birds with one stone!

While any of the so called pass rushers could be considered a risk in this draft, Jones is a safe prospect for a franchise that has missed far to often on 1st round talent and would be fixture on our offensive line for the next decade.

WHODAT

PS: As an LSU fan I cannot tell you how hard it was for me to not only write this but come to terms with it as fact! _________________

WHODAT91FOREVER

Last edited by whodatworm23 on Sun Dec 02, 2012 5:25 am; edited 1 time in total

As I wrote a reply to the GDT post... Barrett Jones crossed my mind. I'd totally love two 1st rounders this year (Nassib and Jones). Like you said, defensive woes can be addressed in FA. Let's continue to draft high quality offensive players and get some defensive steals like Akiem Hicks and Corey White in later rounds as needed.

I absolutely love this prospect._________________

Mid Iowa wrote:

trade Browner to Canada for a tub of fine Maple syrup, and call it a night.

As I wrote a reply to the GDT post... Barrett Jones crossed my mind. I'd totally love two 1st rounders this year (Nassib and Jones). Like you said, defensive woes can be addressed in FA. Let's continue to draft high quality offensive players and get some defensive steals like Akiem Hicks and Corey White in later rounds as needed.

I absolutely love this prospect.

Dat we sure do!

I love Kones and Nassib for obvious reason as I've stated. Nassib to me is the perfect QB in waiting behind Brees but the boy keeps playing so well i thought we could get him in the 3rd but he's playing himself into the late 1st!

Jones on the other hand is EXACTLY what this offense needs! He can compete with everyone... at best he wins the LT spot and Bushrod is moved to the right side, or he wins the right spot and makes that a strgenth, then if the Saints wanna take a page out of Alabamas book and get the best 5 O-Lineman on the field he takes over for puente with Bushron and Brown on the edges and we finally get this running game kicking in overdrive which in turns helps the defense by making the offense more balanced.

Defensivly... I Really like the Saints to persue Louisiana native and current Bucs DE Michael Bennett this offseason. He reminds me of a young Will Smith and is a very underrated player in this leauge._________________

Also, I think we should take a chance on the Honey Badger in a later round if he's still available. Just think, Matthieu and P-Rob staring corners with Greer and Whites as back-ups. Although I think White is better suited for FS duties (which would be awesome for Spags backfield)._________________

Mid Iowa wrote:

trade Browner to Canada for a tub of fine Maple syrup, and call it a night.

Also, I think we should take a chance on the Honey Badger in a later round if he's still available. Just think, Matthieu and P-Rob staring corners with Greer and Whites as back-ups. Although I think White is better suited for FS duties (which would be awesome for Spags backfield).

Badger is a option but I like him more as a safety/nickel corner. A player that I feel is a sleeper that would fit the mold of the big press zone corner Spags likes is Melvin White of LA Lafyette.

I feel the Saints will look to keep a veteran defense with a few new young faces through FA and continue to upgrade their declining offensive line. This is just the way the Saints are built... if Brees can't be flawless then our chance of losing goes way up and Brees can't be flawless if he can't be protected.

One thing no one has mentioned about Brees performance aganist Atlanta was the fact that he was coming off a short week where he was harassed by San Fran defenders, the Saints knew the Falcons were to exploit those weakness and I feel Brees came into that Atlanta games pressing from the start.

I feel he was responding to the 49ers game by doing so... this is all due to the protection meltdowns!

In short... I feel Brees came into the Falcons game not trusting his line would hold up._________________

I feel he was responding to the 49ers game by doing so... this is all due to the protection meltdowns!

In short... I feel Brees came into the Falcons game not trusting his line would hold up.

That coupled with Brees forcing things and making a few poor decisions. Yet another reason to draft Barrett Jones!

True... That's why I feel he was forcing, he didn't feel the protection was going to hold up. Bushrod had been shaky, Puente was abused all season and Strief was rushed back from injury wasen't 100% on top of not being real good in the 1st place. _________________

Over rated. I'm going to be attending University of Alabama next semester so I've been watching all their games and the one thing that stuck out most is how this "elite" prospect got blown off the ball so much. I'll admit I've only watched him in a few games this year but he's really stood out, in a bad way._________________RTR
#JDI
[quote="GFalcon"]go saints[/quote]
[quote="Texansfan713"]Go Pelicans![/quote]

Over rated. I'm going to be attending University of Alabama next semester so I've been watching all their games and the one thing that stuck out most is how this "elite" prospect got blown off the ball so much. I'll admit I've only watched him in a few games this year but he's really stood out, in a bad way.

Which is it? All games or just a few? _________________

Mid Iowa wrote:

trade Browner to Canada for a tub of fine Maple syrup, and call it a night.

This bama o line is very overrated. Just look at the games against A&M and Georgia, McCarron was knocked down a lot. From an o line with likely 3 first round picks this year, i expect a nearly perfect game... You can find qualitiy line players in later rounds and use our first rounder for whatever pass rusher is available!

I agree, O-line should always be priority number 1 as long as Drew Brees is our QB. But this is Sean Payton we're talking about, and he'll do his best to keep this o-line straight. I wouldn't be against the idea of drafting a stud offensive lineman, but don't let this defense fool you. Just because they have been playing better means nothing. They were horrendous at the beginning of the year, horrendous enough that something is wrong, bad wrong, and a few good games aren't gonna correct it. Especially considering those few good games have been against the likes of the pathetic Eagles offense, division rival ATL, which we always play tough, the failure that is called Raiders, and San Fran, with a QB making his second start ever with a team not at all known for offensive powerhousing.

While this is an offensive team first and foremost, and I'd like to see us back to 35 points/game next year, I want to also do whatever it takes to improve this defense at least enough to win games without resorting to shootouts that give me new gray hairs every Sunday.